Citibankhttp://www.businessinsider.com/category/citibank
en-usSun, 02 Aug 2015 19:41:05 -0400Sun, 02 Aug 2015 19:41:05 -0400The latest news on Citibank from Business Insiderhttp://static3.businessinsider.com/assets/images/bilogo-250x36-wide-rev.pngBusiness Insiderhttp://www.businessinsider.com
http://www.businessinsider.com/citibank-creating-its-own-version-of-bitcoin-called-citicoin-2015-7Citibank is creating its own version of Bitcoin called 'Citicoin' (C)http://www.businessinsider.com/citibank-creating-its-own-version-of-bitcoin-called-citicoin-2015-7
Tue, 07 Jul 2015 10:58:40 -0400Ian Allison
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/5408641d6bb3f77f04087eb0-1200-924/citibank-17.jpg" border="0" alt="citibank"></p><p>Citigroup, the global advisor of multi-nationals and governments, has been using its scale and reach in some surprising ways, such as conducting transactions on mobiles without bank accounts in Kenya, and developing blockchains within the bank and test-coins to run across them.</p>
<p>Ken Moore, head of Citi Innovation Labs told&nbsp;IBTimes UK&nbsp;during a technology briefing that the bank has been looking at distributed ledger technology for "the last few years" and has amassed a skilled team.</p>
<p>They have constructed three blockchains and a test currency to run across them.</p>
<p>Moore said: "We have up and running three separate systems within Citi now that actually deploy blockchain distributed ledger technologies. They are all within the labs just now so there is no real money passing through these systems yet, they are at a pre-production level to be clear.</p>
<p>"We also have an equivalent to bitcoin up and running, again within the labs, so we can mine what we call a 'Citicoin', for want of a better term. It's in the labs, but it's to make sure we are at the leading edge of this technology and that we can exploit the opportunities within it."</p>
<p>IBTimes asked if the bank had filed a patent on the technology behind Citicoin.</p>
<p>"No," replied Moore, adding that much of what they have been doing has been open-source.</p>
<p>"Most of our efforts have been focused on payments; trade probably being a second runner," he continued.</p>
<p>Citi has been exploring payments in a cross border capacity, as well as the regulatory environments across various jurisdictions, with a view to how transactions that have taken days can be done in seconds in a very transparent way.</p>
<p><img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/5488748b6da8119a568b456a-1200-800/citibank nyc.jpg" border="0" alt="Citibank NYC"></p>
<p>"Because we are a global network, a global bank, we can look for opportunities to use this technology to move money from country to country - country A to country B, across our network."</p>
<p>There is also the potential to eliminate counterparty risk. The bank has been examining use case scenarios where a large bank like Citi can transact with smaller local banks without worrying about risk or requiring cash collateral and performing immediate FX transactions.</p>
<p>Citi's innovation culture is seasoned. Like many big banks, it is now operating more like a venture capital funder in the fintech space. To achieve better results it is speeding up its capital injection capacity.</p>
<p>"Rather than yearly funding cycles we are working on a 90-day cycle - so from a yearly to a quarterly funding cycle to give enough economic oxygen to these teams," said Moore.</p>
<p>He said the bank is talking to governments and regulators to predict an "end state", and the potential of either a blockchain distributed ledger network popping up internationally, or even "the opportunity to create a state-backed digital currency in a number of different countries".</p>
<p>Moore said the bank's wide ranging work in digitalizing payments and transactions spans five large domains of which blockchain is just one. In respect of distributed ledger, he said that rather than looking at 40 or 50 different companies, Citi has focused "significant" efforts on four or five.</p>
<p>Citi has a global network of innovation labs which reflect its geographic footprint, with labs in Tel Aviv, Dublin, Singapore and a venture capital outfit based in Paolo Alto. The bank said it was also in the process of creating new labs on the consumer banking side to add to the two it already has: one in Blue Ash (the Ohio base of Citigroup's information technology activities) and one in Singapore.</p>
<h3>Transactions without bank accounts</h3>
<p>Many big banks are talking innovation and labs these days. Crypotocurrency advocates like to shoot them down by invoking the billions of unbanked people who have a mobile phone and connection to the internet – a phenomenon which is expected to now gather huge momentum and circumnavigate banking as we know it</p>
<p>However, the Citigroup Treasury and Trade Solutions team surprisingly provided evidence of how it intends to progress into a realm devoid of bank accounts.</p>
<p>Ireti Samuel-Ogbu, managing director, Payments and Receivables EMEA, explained how Citigroup partnered with Safaricom, the largest mobile network operator (MNO) in Kenya to allow transactions to happen using just a mobile phone.</p>
<p><img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/520aa25f6bb3f7876b000000-1200-1200/rtx81dg.jpg" border="0" alt="CitiBank in Los Angeles "></p>
<p>Kenya reflects an African demographic of about 40% of the population holding a bank account, contrasted with 70% to 80% mobile penetration.</p>
<p>Samuel-Ogbu said: "The problem in Kenya was that multinationals and NGOs needed to make payments in remote locations and the only means of doing that was cash. We were able to partner with Safaricom to enable us with our banking platform to make an electronic funds transfer - which is normal for a banking platform - but to also enable payment into a mobile phone.</p>
<p>"So it meant that a customer could send us a file and one part would go off to the local clearing house and the other bit of the file would end up being credited to a mobile phone through partnership with Safaricom.</p>
<p>"You don't need a bank account. It goes straight into the mobile phone, it goes into a wallet."</p>
<p>Samuel-Ogbu added that Nigeria is another place which has become disruptive, technologically speaking, by virtue of the fact it has been late to market.</p>
<p>Nigeria launched something called a Payment Vision 2020 which is about digitizing the whole payments space, anchored in muscular levels of interoperability.</p>
<p>She said the local Nigerian equivalent to bacs or chaps is connected to all the mobile network operators, and you send a transaction into a clearing environment, you can either settle into a bank account or a mobile phone.</p>
<p>"It's not as easy in other countries to solve the interoperability challenge. It's very difficult to get MNOs and banks on the same platform because the central banks think of MNOs being regulated by telecoms regulators, while banks are regulated by central banks. They were able to get over those sorts of problems in Nigeria.</p>
<p>"We see it as a phenomenal innovation," said Samuel-Ogbu.</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/bnp-paribas-bitcoin-blockchain-securities-firms-redundant-2015-7" >One of the world's biggest banks just admitted bitcoin could destroy existing finance firms</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/citibank-creating-its-own-version-of-bitcoin-called-citicoin-2015-7#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/190-bowery-bank-turned-mansion-sale-real-estate-new-york-2015-2">This NYC bank-turned-mansion bought by a photographer for $102,000 just sold for $55 million</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/afp-us-judge-orders-argentina-to-pay-5.2-bn-to-additional-creditors-2015-6A US court just slapped Argentina with a $5.2 billion demandhttp://www.businessinsider.com/afp-us-judge-orders-argentina-to-pay-5.2-bn-to-additional-creditors-2015-6
Fri, 05 Jun 2015 22:30:00 -0400Mariano Andrade
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/54343bbbecad04ef2d3301aa-1200-924/cristina-fernandez-de-kirchner-38.jpg" border="0" alt="cristina fernandez de kirchner"></p><p>New York (AFP) - A US judge ordered Argentina to pay $5.2 billion to some 500 creditors seeking repayment on the same favorable terms given to other holders of the South American country's restructured debt.</p>
<p>In a 26-page ruling, US District Court Judge Thomas Griesa ruled that by refusing to make payment to some hedge fund and individual bondholders of its defaulted debt, while making payment to other creditors,</p>
<p>Buenos Aires was in violation of an equal treatment provision in its contracts.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Griesa in a 2012 ruling sided with a group of hedge funds, led by NML and Aurelius Capital Management who for years have been trying to force Argentina to pay off some $1.3 billion in defaulted bonds they hold.</p>
<p>Now, on Friday, the judge ruled that his 2012 ruling should also apply to some 500 "me-too" bondholders who were not covered under the original decision.</p>
<p>Argentina has been refusing to pay the two hedge funds, arguing that they lost their claim when they refused to join a restructuring of nearly $100 billion in debt the country defaulted on in 2001.</p>
<p>This new ruling tightens the screws even more on Buenos Aires, which has railed against the "extortionary" tactics used by what it describes as "vulture funds" as it seeks to restructure its sovereign debt.</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/argentina-wants-to-hold-citigroup-hostage-2015-3" >Argentina wants to hold Citigroup hostage</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/afp-us-judge-orders-argentina-to-pay-5.2-bn-to-additional-creditors-2015-6#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/daymond-john-personal-success-metrics-shark-tank-investor-entrepreneur-2015-6">'Shark Tank' investor Daymond John reveals the one thing in business more important than money</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/libor-traders-mess-this-up-and-sleep-with-one-eye-open-at-night-2015-5Crooked Wall Street traders allegedly told a newbie: 'Mess this up and sleep with one eye open at night'http://www.businessinsider.com/libor-traders-mess-this-up-and-sleep-with-one-eye-open-at-night-2015-5
Wed, 20 May 2015 15:06:00 -0400Portia Crowe
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/555cd73069bedd6b1a79801a-625-468/paranormal-activity-2.png" alt="paranormal activity" border="0"></p><p>Wall Street banks got <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/libor-rigging-criminal-charges-and-fines-2015-5">hit with $5.8 billion in fines for their roles in the 2008 LIBOR interest rate and currency rigging scandal</a> on Wednesday, and five of them — Citicorp, JPMorgan, Barclays, RBS, and UBS — have pleaded guilty to criminal charges.</p>
<p>A lot of the incriminating information came from transcripts of online-chatroom conversations, and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/libor-scandal-trader-quotes-2015-5">the quotes and anecdotes are a complete disaster</a>.</p>
<p>In one instance, recounted by the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS),&nbsp;a Barclays forex trader was looking for an invitation to a particularly exclusive chatroom known as "The Cartel," which included traders from Citigroup, JPMorgan, UBS, RBS, and Barclays.</p>
<p>The trader, who was the main Euro trader for Barclays in 2011, made various arguments about how he "would add value" to the chatroom, according to the NYDFS.</p>
<p>Ultimately, they let him join for a one-month trial, but allegedly with a pretty ominous warning:</p>
<p>"[M]ess this up and sleep with one eye open at night."</p>
<p>Fortunately for that trader (but probably not so fortunately, in the end), he was allowed to stay in the group until it was dissolved in 2012.</p>
<p>The NYDFS said a number of Barclays employees involved in "wrongful conduct" no longer work at the bank, and announced that eight additional Barclays employees would be terminated for engaging in misconduct in connection to the forex market manipulation.</p>
<p>It's unclear whether this guy was one of them.</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/libor-scandal-trader-quotes-2015-5" >'If you aint cheating, you aint trying' and other quotes from the traders who just cost Wall Street $5.8 billion</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/libor-traders-mess-this-up-and-sleep-with-one-eye-open-at-night-2015-5#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/kevin-olearys-greatest-business-lesson-shark-tank-2015-5">This is the greatest business lesson 'Shark Tank’s' Kevin O’Leary ever learned</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/r-five-big-banks-face-criminal-charges-and-5-billion-bill-over-fx-rigging-2015-55 of the world's biggest banks are expected to plead guilty in an unprecedented criminal casehttp://www.businessinsider.com/r-five-big-banks-face-criminal-charges-and-5-billion-bill-over-fx-rigging-2015-5
Tue, 19 May 2015 19:29:00 -0400
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/555bccf7ecad04a045e72477-600-/jp-morgan-chase-and-company-ceo-jamie-dimon-7.jpg" border="0" alt="JP Morgan Chase and Company CEO Jamie Dimon" width="600"></p><p>Five of the world's biggest banks are expected to be hit with a combined bill of more than $5 billion and criminal charges on Wednesday in a settlement with US and British authorities over the rigging of currency markets.</p>
<p>It will mark another dark day for an industry trying to put past sins behind it and brings the total in penalties some big banks will pay for their traders allegedly manipulating the $5-trillion-a-day foreign exchange market to about $10 billion.</p>
<p>US banks JPMorgan and Citigroup and Britain's Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland are expected to plead guilty to criminal charges with the US Department of Justice related to forex manipulation, people familiar with the matter said.</p>
<p>It would be unprecedented for the parent companies or main banking arms of so many major banks to plead guilty to criminal charges in a coordinated action. JPMorgan and Citigroup would be the first major US banks to plead guilty to criminal charges in decades.</p>
<p>Swiss bank UBS is expected to avoid a criminal charge after getting immunity for alerting authorities to a possible problem. But it faces a criminal charge over the rigging of benchmark (Libor) interest rates, two people familiar with the matter said.</p>
<p>That stems from an agreement with the Justice Department in its December 2012 Libor settlement not to commit more offences. It will also pay a $200 million fine, the two sources said.</p>
<p>Barclays is also expected to reach settlements with other British and US regulators, which means its penalties could be significantly higher than the other banks and top $2 billion.</p>
<p>Barclays has set aside $3.2 billion to cover any forex fines, and other banks also have provisions for settlements.</p>
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/50211d60ecad04b062000004-400-300/lawsky.jpg" border="0" alt="Benjamin Lawsky">Individuals at Barclays could also be held accountable if there is evidence of bad conduct, New York's banking regulator Benjamin Lawsky told Reuters on Tuesday, echoing a warning he made last week.</p>
<p>Britain's Financial Conduct Authority and some US authorities fined a group of six banks $4.3 billion in November for forex manipulation, but Barclays did not join that deal due to complications with its regulator in New York.</p>
<p>The impact of guilty pleas by the parent companies or main banking arms of major banks is uncertain, and could jeopardize their US operations.</p>
<p>The banks are seeking assurances from US regulators they will not be barred from certain businesses if they plead guilty, several sources familiar with situation said.</p>
<p>The DoJ has been negotiating with the banks for months over how to resolve the forex allegations. Transcripts of online chat rooms made public in November showed how traders shared confidential information about client orders and otherwise conspired to benefit their own transactions.</p>
<p>The timing of a settlement could still slip if there is a last-minute hitch.</p>
<p>Some authorities will continue to look at whether computer programs used in trading platforms could have rigged forex prices, which is likely to be excluded from Wednesday's deal.<span style="line-height: 1.5em;">&nbsp;</span></p>
<p>(By Reuters reporters in London, Zurich, New York and Washington, D.C. Editing by Jane Merriman)</p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/r-five-big-banks-face-criminal-charges-and-5-billion-bill-over-fx-rigging-2015-5#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/kevin-olearys-greatest-business-lesson-shark-tank-2015-5">This is the greatest business lesson 'Shark Tank’s' Kevin O’Leary ever learned</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/lloyds-bank-of-ireland-and-rbs-are-ticking-pension-timebombs-2015-5Lloyds, Barclays and RBS are billions short on their staff pension commitmentshttp://www.businessinsider.com/lloyds-bank-of-ireland-and-rbs-are-ticking-pension-timebombs-2015-5
Mon, 11 May 2015 03:29:00 -0400Oscar Williams-Grut
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/55506ea6dd0895411d8b456c-1200-800/rtx16vkh.jpg" border="0" alt="jump fall diving board pool"></p><p>UK banking shares <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/general-election-market-effect-2015-5">surged on news of a Conservative election victory last week</a>, with investors hoping the Tories will go easy on the industry.</p>
<p>But it looks like the banks may have a bigger problem than stricter regulation of capital requirements and <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/barclays-q1-results-and-outlook-and-fines-2015-4">fines for things like PPI miselling</a> - paying for pensions.</p>
<p>Citi has warned that British and Irish lenders could be forced to pour millions or even billions more into their pension funds to meet requirements.</p>
<p>An analysis of annual reports from banks across Europe found the Bank of Ireland, Lloyds Banking Group and the Royal Bank of Scotland are three most at risk, with Barclays not far behind.</p>
<p>Because these banks have such large pension schemes - in Lloyds and RBS's case both more than £35 billion ($53.95 billion) - changes to the way pension forecasts are calculated could force them to pour billions more into their funds.</p>
<p>The problem lies with ultra low interest rates. Pension liabilities are calculated using something called a 'discount rate' - the assumed annual return a company will make from investing its pension fund. This figure determines how much companies put aside for the future.</p>
<p>But low interest rates have led to tumbling discount rates and the onset of Eurozone quantitative easing means rates look unlikely to rise any time soon.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Most banks already have a pension funding shortfall.&nbsp;<span>RBS has a deficit of £2.2 billion ($3.39 billion), while Lloyds is £890 million ($1.37 billion) short and Barclays needs an extra £1.5 billion ($2.31 billion). But these figures could soar if the discount rate shifts even slightly.</span></p>
<p><img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/555068bcdd0895e6118b4591-498-333/pension%20deficit.jpg" border="0" alt="Citi banking pension deficit"></p>
<p>Meanwhile, when you look at pension deficits compared to book value Bank of Ireland performs terribly. The lender currently needs to find an extra £986 million ($1.5 billion) to pay retirement costs, an eye-watering 13% of Bank of Ireland's entire book value.</p>
<p>Banks aren't the only ones suffering from this trend, <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/telecoms/11378773/BT-pension-deficit-nearly-doubles-to-7bn.html">with BT warning earlier this year that it's deficit has nearly doubled to £7 billion&nbsp;($10.79 billion)</a>. Citi's analysis shows UK banks could soon be forced to make similar costly adjustments.</p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/lloyds-bank-of-ireland-and-rbs-are-ticking-pension-timebombs-2015-5#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/new-omega-globemaster-watch-unboxing-2015-5">Forget the Apple Watch — here's the new watch everyone on Wall Street wants</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/argentina-to-raid-citigroup-2015-4This is what it looks like when Argentina tries to embarrass your entire company in front of the worldhttp://www.businessinsider.com/argentina-to-raid-citigroup-2015-4
Mon, 06 Apr 2015 12:48:00 -0400Linette Lopez
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/5522b6f0ecad047c6e54f8d4-1009-757/cristina-fernandez-9.png" border="0" alt="cristina fernandez "></p><p>It's come down to a raid.</p>
<p>After suspending Citibank's access to Argentine capital markets and sacking the bank's CEO in the country, Argentine authorities will perform an "integral inspection" on the banks headquarters, according to the <a href="http://tiempo.infonews.com/nota/149330/el-bcra-desembarca-en-el-citi-para-garantizar-su-funcionamiento">country's central bank head, Alejandro Vanoli</a>.</p>
<p>"We want to know, without a doubt, given the fact that it's now headless, that the bank still has the legal infrastructure to guarantee that there are no problems with clients and employees," Vanoli told Argentine paper Tiempo Argentina.</p>
<p><span>Citibank Argentina CEO Gabriel Ribisich, who has led the bank since 2013,</span><span>&nbsp;was fired last week because he "ignored" local laws.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Yes, that's vague, so here's what happened:</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"> Argentina wanted Citibank's custody business to pay out creditors in violation of an order from the US judge presiding over the country's decade-old lawsuit with a group of hedge funds known collectively as NML. </span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Judge Thomas Griesa's basic order, which pushed Argentina into default this summer, was that Argentina cannot pay some creditors who bought Argentine sovereign debt dating to 2001 and not others.</span></p>
<p><span>Argentina tried to get around that order by putting the bonds in question under its own jurisdiction — essentially waving a magic wand and making Judge Griesa's authority disappear.</span></p>
<p><span>Unfortunately international law doesn't quote work that way exactly, and since Citi didn't want to violate the law, it came to an agreement with the Court and NML so that it could take its custody business out of Argentina altogether.</span></p>
<p>To Argentina this means as follows (from Tiempo Argentina):</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Valoni, in tune with the rest of the government, headed by the Minister of the Economy, Axel [Kicillof], is convinced that Citi did not play fairly and established a tacit agreement (which was ultimately very convenient) with the New York Judge Thomas Griesa and NML in order to make a joke out of Argentine law.</p>
<p><span>So this is about pride, people.</span></p>
<p><span> And of course, the over $1.3 billion NML has said Argentina has owed it for over a decade. </span></p>
<p><span><img style="float:right;" src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/5509bec56da811a1568b4567-1200-2000/rtr4tpeo.jpg" border="0" alt="citi argentina">Argentina, to review, refuses to pay NML because, unlike 93% of bondholders, NML has refused to take a haircut on any of the Argentine debt it purchased in a fire sale after the country defaulted back in 2001. This business with Citi is just one moving part in a gigantic, confusing mess.</span></p>
<p>"Citibank did not have to consult (Thomas) Griesa and should've acted in accordance with Argentine law,"&nbsp;<a href="http://tiempo.infonews.com/nota/149325/vanoli-son-los-mismos-sectores-que-en-septiembre-apostaron-a-la-devaluacion">Vanoli said in an interview.</a>&nbsp;"The response from the financial system is out of line. Of course, it's expected because it's the attitude they've always had, it's always defended corporations.</p>
<p><span><span>"They're accustomed to the Superintendents of Banks and the Central Bank [Argentine regulators] always being passive but it's not that way anymore because now mechanisms of control and regulation exist to avoid abuses ... "</span></span></p>
<p>Argentina said at first that Citi would in no way be able to take its business out of the country. But that's tough to stop. <span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Argentina can make Citi's exit "a very difficult, long and drawn-out process,"&nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">David Fernandez, a public finance lawyer at Buchanan, Ingersoll &amp; Rooney told Business Insider.&nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">"But if somebody doesn't want to do the business, eventually they're going to find their way out of it."</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">The key there is "long and drawn out." The way Argentina sounds right now, it's ready for battle.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">"There is a double standard with Argentina," <a href="http://tiempo.infonews.com/nota/149325/vanoli-son-los-mismos-sectores-que-en-septiembre-apostaron-a-la-devaluacion">said Vanoli in an interview this weekend</a>.&nbsp;"When r<span>egulatory entities</span>&nbsp;in the United States and Europe impose multimillion dollar finds on financial firms that violate the law, no one says anything. Meanwhile over here when the same thing happens they start talking about how we're "Chavez-ising' the economy."</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><span>Yes, that was a reference to late Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez.</span></span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><span>And yes, Vanoli was comparing sacking a private company's CEO and raiding its offices to levying a fine.</span></span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><span>So that's where we're at, people.</span></span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">&nbsp;</span></p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/argentina-to-raid-citigroup-2015-4#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/tony-robbins-5-secrets-for-rich-2015-4">Tony Robbins shares 5 keys to getting rich</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/citi-sources-stocks-demand-2015-1CITI: Here Are 3 Potentially Massive Sources Of Demand For Stocks (C, DIA, SPY, QQQ, TLT, IWM)http://www.businessinsider.com/citi-sources-stocks-demand-2015-1
Fri, 23 Jan 2015 12:29:06 -0500Akin Oyedele
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/54c284626bb3f7bc293f9baa-1200-924/open-floodgates-dam-rushing-water-8.jpg" border="0" alt="open floodgates dam rushing water"></p><p>Demand for US stocks has been strong in recent months despite recent episodes of volatility.</p>
<p>One explanation is that investors rotated money out of fixed income and into cash and stocks, especially as government bond yields dropped and interest rates stayed low.</p>
<p>But according to Citi's "Investment Themes for 2015," the traditional rotation between equities and fixed income is losing its importance as a strategy.</p>
<p>Moving forward, investors will be looking into secular, long-term trends to move between asset classes, instead of the traditional moves that are driven by the business cycle, allowing for "a meaningful reallocation towards equity markets."</p>
<p>Citi's Mark Schofield writes:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 60px;">"The biggest reallocation of assets that has taken place in the past decade has been de-risking out of equities and into cash. The trend towards diversification means that this move is unlikely to be reversed in its entirety but <strong>low rates and low volatility could be the trigger for some secular re-risking which could generate a significant increase in demand for equities over the next few years</strong>."</p>
<p>Schofield writes that these are the biggest secular trends that will drive demand:</p>
<ul>
<li>High Net Worth individuals have been very wary of equities since the financial crisis, but with the yield on the 10-year note below 2% and lower in Europe and Japan, they will switch.</li>
<li>Insurance companies will increase their buying after a 15-year selloff because of changes in capital regulation and an increased focus on asset-liability management.</li>
<li>Companies will take advantage of low rates to buy back their stocks.</li>
</ul>
<p><span>Schofield adds that,&nbsp;</span>"Flow data certainly suggest that the secular demand for equities may be turning after nearly two decades of contraction and we expect the aggregate demand for equities to continue to rise."</p>
<p><img src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/54c1777cecad04f779d0d29a-865-667/screen shot 2015-01-22 at 5.18.30 pm.png" border="0" alt="Screen Shot 2015 01 22 at 5.18.30 PM"></p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/bofa-record-energy-stocks-buying-2015-1" >Here Comes The Rush To Buy Energy Stocks</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/citi-sources-stocks-demand-2015-1#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/the-future-of-mobile-and-online-banking-2014-slide-deck-2014-10The Future Of Mobile And Online Banking: 2014 [SLIDE DECK]http://www.businessinsider.com/the-future-of-mobile-and-online-banking-2014-slide-deck-2014-10
Mon, 06 Oct 2014 12:15:00 -0400John Heggestuen
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/542d50156bb3f775387c71e0-400-/us-bank-branches.png" border="0" alt="US Bank Branches" width="400" style="float: right;"></p><p>Since the early days of the internet, retail banks have feared the day when customers would turn away from traditional brick-and-mortar bank branches. With the rise of mobile banking, it's definitely starting to happen.&nbsp;</p>
<p><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/heres-a-look-a-the-exciting-evolution-of-retail-banking-2014-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=P-BankDeck-2014-10-2&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;|\=/g, '-');">BI Intelligence</a> finds that even banks' desktop websites are seeing a loss in use, as smartphone apps become personal finance hubs. Young consumers are also increasingly looking to tech companies for financial services. We've created these slides to preview our report on how digital banking is changing in the mobile era. We hope you enjoy it.&nbsp;</p>
<p><em><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/heres-a-look-a-the-exciting-evolution-of-retail-banking-2014-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=P-BankDeck-2014-10-2&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;|\=/g, '-');"><strong>BI&nbsp;<strong>Intelligence</strong></strong></a>&nbsp;is a research and analysis service focused on payments, e-commerce, mobile computing, and digital media. Only subscribers&nbsp;<a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/heres-a-look-a-the-exciting-evolution-of-retail-banking-2014-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=P-BankDeck-2014-10-2&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;|\=/g, '-');">can download the full report on Mobile Banking, as well as the report's individual charts and datasets in Excel, along with the PowerPoint version</a>&nbsp;of this deck.&nbsp;Please&nbsp;<a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/heres-a-look-a-the-exciting-evolution-of-retail-banking-2014-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=P-BankDeck-2014-10-2&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;|\=/g, '-');"><strong>sign up for a free trial here</strong></a>.</em></p>
<p><em>&nbsp;</em></p><img src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/542d4f3269beddce02e84a62-400-300/.jpg" alt="" />
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<br/><br/><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-future-of-mobile-and-online-banking-2014-slide-deck-2014-10#-4">See the rest of the story at Business Insider</a> http://www.businessinsider.com/r-after-23-million-rides-no-deaths-in-us-bike-share-programs-2014-12Bike Sharing Succeeds On Safety, But The Finances Are A Strugglehttp://www.businessinsider.com/r-after-23-million-rides-no-deaths-in-us-bike-share-programs-2014-12
Tue, 12 Aug 2014 09:47:00 -0400Barbara Goldberg
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/53ea13955afbd33d568b4567-450-300/after-23-million-rides-no-deaths-in-us-bike-share-programs.jpg" alt="A Citi Bike bicycle is seen at a rental location in New York May 27, 2014. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton " border="0"></p><p>NEW YORK (Reuters) - Yanking a bicycle from the docking station outside New York's Grand Central Terminal, a helmetless rider slung a golf bag full of clubs over his shoulder and, along with another rider wearing headphones but no helmet, merged into rush hour traffic.</p>
<p>Against all odds - including novice riders, refusal to wear bike helmets and the daily crush of weaving, horn-blaring traffic - not a single rider in New York City's bike share program has been killed since it launched in May 2013, a Citi Bike representative said.</p>
<p>In fact, experts say no fatalities have been logged in any U.S. public bike share program since the first one launched in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 2007. There are now programs in 36 cities, including Chicago, Minneapolis and San Francisco, with new services planned in Tampa, Florida, Boise, Idaho, Portland, Oregon, and elsewhere.</p>
<p>While there is no central reporting clearinghouse for bike share fatalities, the safety record was confirmed by three alternative transportation experts: Susan Shaheen, co-director of the University of California at Berkeley's Transportation Sustainability Research Center; Russell Meddin, founder of the Bike-sharing World Map; and Paul DeMaio, founder of MetroBike, the nation's oldest bike-share consultancy.</p>
<p>When New York's program, sponsored by Citibank, was launched in May 2013, critics and late-night television hosts shared dire predictions for riders, some of whom were only then learning to ride.</p>
<p>At the time, then-city Comptroller John Liu called for mandatory bike helmets for adults to lessen "the human toll" but failed in his effort. "The Daily Show" host Jon Stewart joked that the bike share program sparked a new business idea called "Jon Stewart's Street Brain Removal Service."</p>
<p>But no one has been killed and only 40 people have been hurt and required medical attention after 10.3 million rides, a Citi Bike representative said.</p>
<p>"It's like pedaling a tank," said Thomas Brereton, 53, an accountant from suburban&nbsp;Westchester County&nbsp;who rides a Citi Bike from the Manhattan train station to his Brooklyn office.</p>
<p>That is precisely why bike share riders across the United States remain safe - even after 23 million rides since 2007 through city streets where taxis screech into bike lanes to pick up passengers and texting pedestrians step obliviously into bikeways, experts say.</p>
<p>"The bikes are heavy, with a very low center of gravity, wide tires, drum brakes that keep the braking system dry even in inclement weather, and the bikes are geared so it is difficult to gain considerable speed," Shaheen said.</p>
<p><strong>'PHENOMENAL'</strong></p>
<p>That safety net has not extended to other cyclists. In New York, there were 18 bike fatalities in 2012, 12 in 2013, and 12 so far this year, said a city Department of Transportation spokeswoman.</p>
<p>Even the accident rate in the bike share program is impressive, with about 10.5 crashes with or without injury per 1 million trips, Meddin said.</p>
<p>"I believe that to be a phenomenal safety record and, coupled with the no U.S.A. fatalities, bike share has a better record than bicycling," Meddin said.</p>
<p>Still, cities with bike share programs have a higher proportion of head injuries among bicycle-related injuries than cities without such programs, according to a recent study published in the American Journal of Public Health.</p>
<p>While New York and many other cities don't provide helmets, some bike share programs are moving to change that, including Boston, which has had helmet vending machines since 2013.</p>
<p>Less healthy than Citi Bike's safety record is its finances, with the number of annual memberships dropping from 105,359 in May to 96,318 in June, said a Citi Bike representative, who said July figures were expected to be similar.</p>
<p>Negotiations are under way for a takeover by a new operator, REQX Ventures, with plans to expand further into Manhattan and Brooklyn, as well as into Queens, while boosting the $95 yearly membership fee to $140 or more, according to the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times. Citi Bike, REQX Ventures and the city declined to comment.</p>
<p>Both Brereton, the bike-riding accountant, and fellow Citi Bike member Adam Price, a clinical psychologist who regularly rides from Manhattan's Penn Station to his office near Gramercy Park, said they would willingly pay the higher annual fee, which would still cost less than a two-month weekday subway commute.</p>
<p>Safety has not necessarily bred civility among riders of the popular bike share program on New York City's mean streets.</p>
<p>"I've had a few races to the last bike on the rack, and it brought out an aggressiveness in me that is not usually there," said Price, 53, of Maplewood, New Jersey.</p>
<p>"One rider who beat me to a bike apologized and told me where the nearest alternative station was. When I beat a different rider to a bike, I apologized - but he swore at me," he said.</p>
<p>(Editing by Jill Serjeant and Douglas Royalty)</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/nycs-popular-citibike-bike-share-program-desperately-needs-14m-investment-2014-4" >NYC's Popular Citibike Bike Share Program Desperately Needs A $14M Investment</a></strong></p>
<p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/cms/posts/edit?id=53ea13965afbd33d568b456a" >3 Charts That Explain The Massive Success Of NYC's Bike Share Program</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/r-after-23-million-rides-no-deaths-in-us-bike-share-programs-2014-12#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/mexican-oil-executive-suspected-of-defrauding-citibank-up-to-400-million-2014-3Mexican Oil Executive Under House Arrest On Suspicion Of Defrauding Citibank Up To $400 Millionhttp://www.businessinsider.com/mexican-oil-executive-suspected-of-defrauding-citibank-up-to-400-million-2014-3
Tue, 25 Mar 2014 06:41:15 -0400Agence France Presse
<p><img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/53315cde69bedd0f1820366e-1200-858/citibank-3.jpg" border="0" alt="citibank" /></p><p>A judge placed the head of a Mexican oil services firm under house arrest due to suspicion that his company defrauded US bank Citigroup in a multi-million-dollar case.</p>
<p>Amado Yanez, chief executive and majority shareholder of Oceanografia, will be held for up to 40 days as prosecutors determine what charges he might face, Attorney General Jesus Murillo Karam told a news conference.</p>
<p>Citigroup said late last month that it was slashing $235 million from its 2013 financial results due to the fraud committed against its Mexican subsidiary, Banamex.</p>
<p>The US banking group said up to $400 million of $585 million in credit given to Oceanografia by Banamex was based on bogus invoices from the energy firm, which is a major supplier of Mexico's state-run oil monopoly Pemex.</p>
<p>The scandal prompted the Mexican government to take control of Oceanografia, a company that employs 11,000 people and has a fleet of around 70 ships.</p>
<p>The government has also taken over a first division football team owned by Yanez, the White Roosters of Queretaro, as part of the investigation.</p>
<p>Murillo Karam defended the decision to detain Yanez for up to 40 days without charges, a practice known as "arraigo" that has been criticized by human rights groups.</p>
<p>The procedure allows prosecutors to renew the arrest for another 40 days for a total of 80 as they investigate a case.</p>
<p>Murillo Karam said the government has been against abusing the use of "arraigos" but that this was a case where "superior interests" must be protected.</p>
<p>In this case, he said, the authorities needed to place Yanez under house arrest to gather evidence as well as ensure that the government can protect Oceanografia's 11,000 employees and top client, Pemex.</p>
<p>"These are the reasons why we have decided to use 'arraigo' as an extraordinary measure in this occasion," Murillo Karam said. "As we have before since we have been in the attorney general's office, solely to protect superior interests."</p>
<p>The attorney general also denied that there was any political motivations behind the investigation.</p>
<p>The conservative National Action Party (PAN) has walked out of negotiations in Congress on legislation to implement energy reform, accusing President Enrique Pena Nieto's government of using the Oceanografia scandal to get its way.</p>
<p>Oceanografia was already a top supplier of Pemex during the 12 years that the PAN held the presidency from 2000 to 2012.</p>
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<p>Copyright (2014) AFP. All rights reserved.</p>
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<p><img class="nc_pixel" src="http://pixel.newscred.com/px.gif?key=YXJ0aWNsZT00MWVhMzA4ZDllNDRlNDNmN2ZiYmUzYWJlY2RmMTRiNCZub25jZT1lNTQxMzA0NS1iNjRlLTQ5ZjAtYmNiMy0xNGZkZWNlZTY1YTQmcHVibGlzaGVyPThjMDBmYmVlNjFkNWJjZjBjNjA5MmQ4YjkyZWJiY2Ex" border="0" alt="" width="1" height="1" /></p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/mexican-oil-executive-suspected-of-defrauding-citibank-up-to-400-million-2014-3#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/debrahlee-lorenzana-sues-quest-diagnostics-2013-11Ex-Citibank Employee Who Said She Got Fired For Being Too Hot Is Back With A New Lawsuithttp://www.businessinsider.com/debrahlee-lorenzana-sues-quest-diagnostics-2013-11
Mon, 25 Nov 2013 11:48:00 -0500Erin Fuchs
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/52937dc16da811cc4870f5fe-480-/citibank-debrahlee-lorenzana.jpg" border="0" alt="Citibank Debrahlee Lorenzana," width="480" /></p><p>A <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/debrahlee-lorenzana-citi-2010-6">notorious ex-Citi banker</a> who claimed she was fired for being too sexy has quietly filed a new lawsuit claiming that Quest Diagnostics screwed up a blood test, <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/queens/too-attractive-ex-citi-banker-sues-quest-blood-draw-article-1.1527622#axzz2lfrxhubX">the New York Daily News reports</a>.</p>
<p>Debrahlee Lorenzana, 36, says she suffered severe injuries after a hapless nurse drew her blood.</p>
<p>The lawsuit claims she suffered &ldquo;severe shock and damage to her nervous system and certain internal injuries,&rdquo; according to the Daily News. The allegedly shoddy bloodwork &ldquo;damaged her psychophysical motor skills,&rdquo; making her "suffer severe physical pain and mental anguish as a result,&rdquo; according to the lawsuit.</p>
<p>Her lawyer, Frank Panetta, told the Daily News that the allegations that his client got nerve damage from bad bloodwork aren't all that odd.</p>
<p>"What&rsquo;s unusual about that?" he told the Daily News. "Sometimes they screw up.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Lorenzana gained national prominence in 2010, when she filed a lawsuit claiming she got harassed at Citibank for being too hot and then fired. That year, she spoke to Elizabeth Dwoskin of the Village Voice about her experience at the bank. From <a href="http://www.villagevoice.com/2010-06-01/news/is-this-woman-too-hot-to-work-in-a-bank/">Dwoskin's article</a>:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 60px;">Her bosses told her they couldn't concentrate on their work because her appearance was too distracting. They ordered her to stop wearing turtlenecks. She was also forbidden to wear pencil skirts, three-inch heels, or fitted business suits. Lorenzana, a 33-year-old single mom, pointed out female colleagues whose clothing was far more revealing than hers: "They said their body shapes were different from mine, and I drew too much attention," she says.</p>
<p>The case went into <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arbitration">arbitration </a>(an outside-of-court dispute resolution), and Citi has made it clear that it <a href="http://dealbreaker.com/2012/05/citi-would-like-to-make-it-clear-it-did-not-pay-debrahlee-lorenzana-a-dime/#more-76999">didn't pay her a cent</a>.</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/iowa-court-affirms-2013-7" >Iowa's Top Court Says Bosses Can Fire Workers For Being Too Hot</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/debrahlee-lorenzana-sues-quest-diagnostics-2013-11#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/citi-will-open-an-office-in-iraq-2013-6Citi Is Positioning Itself At The Center Of What Could Be A $2 Trillion Economy By 2050http://www.businessinsider.com/citi-will-open-an-office-in-iraq-2013-6
Mon, 24 Jun 2013 10:07:00 -0400Steven Perlberg
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/51c84f94eab8ea7220000024-480-/iraq-handshake.png" border="0" alt="iraq handshake" width="480" /></p><p>Talk about an emerging market.</p>
<p>Citigroup <a href="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/baf10f20-dbff-11e2-a861-00144feab7de.html#axzz2X8XTrAtb">will open an office in Baghdad</a>, becoming the first U.S. bank to expand into Iraq and dive into the country's oil-rich <span>&mdash;&nbsp;</span>but politically uncertain <span>&mdash;</span>&nbsp;future, the Financial Times reports.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/baf10f20-dbff-11e2-a861-00144feab7de.html#axzz2X8XTrAtb">From the FT:</a></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">In the past decade, the bank has been catering to investors and large companies operating in Iraq, offering products such as trade finance, cash management and investment banking services through its regional hub in Dubai, its Iraq-desk in Amman and via London.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Citi&rsquo;s move to establish a physical foothold in the market comes as major international oil groups as well as industrial and construction companies are looking to invest in Iraq.</p>
<p>Citigroup estimates that Iraq will turn into a $2 trillion economy by 2050, according to the report.</p>
<p>Certainly not the first entity to <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/iraq-war-facts-numbers-stats-total-2013-3">land in Iraq and hope it works out</a>, Citi's "toe in the water" strategy will lay the groundwork for an eventual full-scale shop, sources told the FT.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/baf10f20-dbff-11e2-a861-00144feab7de.html#axzz2X8XTrAtb">Read the full report at the Financial Times&gt;</a></p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/citi-will-open-an-office-in-iraq-2013-6#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/gun-control-ge-capital-freedom-group-cerberus-sale-problems-2013-4Gun Control Advocates Have Scored A Major Victory That Nobody Is Talking Abouthttp://www.businessinsider.com/gun-control-ge-capital-freedom-group-cerberus-sale-problems-2013-4
Fri, 26 Apr 2013 14:05:00 -0400Walter Hickey
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/517a9c3deab8eaf63d000001-400-/immelt-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Immelt" width="400" /></p><p>This week G.E. Capital Finance announced that <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2013/04/24/ge-capital-gun-shops/2110435/">it would no longer finance gun purchases</a>, becoming the latest in a string of companies that have decided to leave a large amount of money on the table rather than risk their reputations on the gun business.&nbsp;</p>
<p>It's one of the few places where the high-profile publicity campaign in support of increased gun control has led to a real world result.</p>
<p>Last week advocates for gun control were dealt a humbling blow when legislation to require background checks at gun shows <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/gun-control-background-check-senate-vote-live-2013-4">publicly flopped on the floor of the Senate</a> after weeks of work.&nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Despite the political defeat, however, something very interesting has happened in the private sector.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p><a class="hidden_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/ge">GE</a> is based in Fairfield, Conn., and <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324743704578442561634381232.html">several employees have children in Sandy Hook</a>&nbsp;Elementary School, the site of the December mass shooting, according to the <a class="hidden_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/wsj">WSJ</a>. <a class="hidden_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/jeff-immelt">Jeff Immelt</a>, the CEO of GE, had a meeting with employees after the shooting. This, among other reasons, led to the lender ending financing for guns.&nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">GE is the fifth-largest lender in the country. While t</span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">heir decision to stop lending to gun buyers will only impact a very small portion of the market, the optics of it are not good for the business of guns.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p>The decision brings GE in line with <a class="hidden_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/wells-fargo">Wells Fargo</a> and Citigroup, both of which stopped financing gun purchases several years ago. But firms directly involved in the gun trade are having an even harder time.&nbsp;</p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em; color: #000000;">Cerberus Capital, the private investment company that owns Freedom Group &mdash; the manufacturer of the assault weapon Adam Lanza used to murder 20 children and 6 adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School &mdash; announced days after the shooting that they planned to unload the company from their portfolio.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em; color: #000000;"></span><span style="line-height: 1.5em; color: #000000;">But Cerberus has been having difficulties finding a buyer for the company. Other gun manufacturers are </span><a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323309604578429232172444330.html">using this opportunity to kick Freedom Group's tires</a><span style="line-height: 1.5em; color: #000000;">, so to speak, and investigate their financials while a buyer remains elusive, according to the Wall Street Journal and <a class="hidden_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/bloomberg">Bloomberg</a> News.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em; color: #000000;"></span><span style="line-height: 1.5em; color: #000000;">It's come to the point where several individual Cerberus partners are pursuing a bid as a way to put a floor on the auction. Multiple investment banks &mdash; reportedly <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/cerberus-finds-difficulty-selling-freedom-group/article_587d7736-dde3-5874-a765-5d5fb153c71f.html">including JPMorgan Chase, Credit Suisse and Barclays</a> &mdash;&nbsp;declined to aid Cerberus in the sale&nbsp;and have refused to represent buyers&nbsp;to avoid getting pulled into a politically contentious gun debate.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em; color: #000000;">The sale is worth millions in fees &mdash; Freedom Group could fetch as much as $1 billion &mdash; and yet multiple banks have decided that getting in the gun business isn't even worth all the money when reputations are at risk.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em; color: #000000;"><a href="http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/cerberus-finds-difficulty-selling-freedom-group/article_587d7736-dde3-5874-a765-5d5fb153c71f.html">According to Bloomberg news</a>, "C<span>erberus may have to take a lower price or be unable to sell the business because so many banks are unwilling to work on the deal, said one of the people with knowledge of the matter."</span></span></p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/gun-control-ge-capital-freedom-group-cerberus-sale-problems-2013-4#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/citibank-eliminated-digital-marketing-2013-4Why Citibank Eliminated Its Digital Marketing Departmenthttp://www.businessinsider.com/citibank-eliminated-digital-marketing-2013-4
Wed, 17 Apr 2013 14:09:00 -0400Laura Stampler
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/516ecc2eecad047f4800000b-400-/citibank-opening-12-1.jpg" border="0" alt="citibank opening 12" width="400" /></p><p>In a crowded conference hall filled with digital ad marketers, Citibank North American head of consumer marketing Vanessa Colella explained why it made perfect sense that one of her first orders of business was, in fact, "eliminating the digital marketing department."</p>
<p>While having a group of digital specialists who "all come with incredible backgrounds, they speak in jargon, and wear blue jeans" could be comforting, Colella explained at Ad Age's Digital Conference, that it is often a crutch.</p>
<p>Why? Because everyone in a company's marketing department needs to be fluent in digital strategy. "There's no path for you if you don't," she said.</p>
<p>So Citibank trained everyone, from those who specialized in bus shelters to TV marketing, to be digitally savvy.&nbsp;</p>
<p>"That, as you might imagine, was not an overnight thing," Colella said. "We did a lot of internal training, and we hired strategically," taking on people from <a class="hidden_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/yahoo">Yahoo</a>, <a class="hidden_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/microsoft">Microsoft</a>, and <a class="hidden_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/google">Google</a>.</p>
<p>Colella believes in streamlining the marketing process, keeping things quick and simple.</p>
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/516ecc68ecad04094b000001-548-300/screen%20shot%202013-04-17%20at%2012.22.19%20pm.png" border="0" alt="Vanessa Colella LinkedIn Citibank" width="400" />When <a class="hidden_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/citi">Citi</a> had a <a href="http://bucks.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/10/citibank-lets-loyalty-members-pool-points-on-facebook/">Facebook campaign that helped people pool their credit card points</a> to take a group vacation or buy their friend a big gift, Colella said she told her new team, "Welcome to Citi, here is where the bathroom is, you have eight weeks [to develop the campaign]. You are forcing people to strip it down and keep it simple."</p>
<p>But campaigns don't just stay in the digital realm &mdash; thus why marketing employees have to be able to float between different mediums.</p>
<p>One of Citibank's greatest successes is <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&amp;rct=j&amp;q=&amp;esrc=s&amp;source=web&amp;cd=1&amp;ved=0CDUQFjAA&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fgroups%2FConnect-Professional-Womens-Network-Powered-4409416&amp;ei=gspuUYavIuiD0QG2joDgBA&amp;usg=AFQjCNGltSelBYBo1L0Zog2NoK69Cr9USg&amp;sig2=BWPw_1Dj26aL-jOVRmw60g&amp;bvm=bv.45368065,d.dmQ">Connect, a women's professional network on LinkedIn.</a></p>
<p>"It became not just a digital program because women on the network decided they wanted to get together, and we started going to those," Colella said, admitting, "They didn't ask us in the beginning."</p>
<p>But now Citi throws events for participants of what has become one of <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&amp;rct=j&amp;q=&amp;esrc=s&amp;source=web&amp;cd=2&amp;ved=0CDoQFjAB&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fastcompany.com%2F3002771%2Fif-you-want-your-brand-resonate-linkedin-hit-right-emotional-cues-hint-ambition&amp;ei=mspuUainLcKV0QHRnIGQDQ&amp;usg=AFQjCNE5YL8Dj0oB_IBagQoNKx46JDZV0w&amp;sig2=Kkpn7WowWrfJI4ithBTtkg&amp;bvm=bv.45368065,d.dmQ">LinkedIn's most successful groups</a>.</p>
<p>On the flipside, the <a href="http://citibikenyc.com/">physical bike sharing initiative, called Citibike,</a>&nbsp;is getting turned into an app.</p>
<p>"It started in the physical space and grew up into the digital," Colella said.</p>
<p>Evolution is key, she said, noting that a campaign doesn't have to live in a single publisher or ad network.</p>
<p>"Digital is not a department," Colella said. "It's not a department at Citi, not at our agency ... I don't want it to be at our partners."</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/dove-sketches-show-women-are-too-self-critical-2013-4" >Side-by-side FBI sketches show that women think they're less attractive than strangers do ></a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/citibank-eliminated-digital-marketing-2013-4#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/the-five-worst-mortagage-lender-banks-2012-12These Are The Mortgage Lenders Consumers Complain About The Most http://www.businessinsider.com/the-five-worst-mortagage-lender-banks-2012-12
Tue, 18 Dec 2012 16:19:40 -0500Christian Hudspeth
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/4f3c226e6bb3f7f753000056-400-300/boa_edited-1.jpg" border="0" alt="bank of america" /></p><p>Owning an <span class="nolink">investment</span> property<strong>&nbsp;</strong>can be difficult for a number of reasons.</p>
<p>There's always the possibility that you'll have deadbeat tenants, need to make seemingly endless repairs and even lose your shirt if your property value takes a nosedive.</p>
<p>But often, the biggest headache comes before you or that first renter ever sets foot on the property &mdash; dealing with the <a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/financial-dictionary/real-estate/mortgage-1608" class="definition-url"><span class="definition-url">mortgage</span></a> <a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/financial-dictionary/debt-bankruptcy/lender-5069" class="definition-url"><span class="definition-url">lender</span></a>.&nbsp;</p>
<p>While it's an essential part of the process of buying any home &mdash; whether it's an <a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/financial-dictionary/investing/investment-4904" class="definition-url"><span class="definition-url">investment</span></a> or your primary residence &mdash; recent government data suggests that <span class="definition-url"><a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/financial-dictionary/real-estate/landlord-3471" class="definition-url"><span class="definition-url">landlords</span></a></span> and homeowners alike have filed a tremendous number of complaints against mortgage lending banks for their business practices.</p>
<p>It's not just banks, though. Mortgage servicers &mdash; companies that don't lend <a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/financial-dictionary/economics/money-5074" class="definition-url"><span class="definition-url">money</span></a> but instead manage the day-to-day loan payment collection and other tasks for the mortgage <a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/financial-dictionary/debt-bankruptcy/lender-5069" class="definition-url"><span class="definition-url">lenders</span></a> &mdash; and other mortgage-related companies generated their share of complaints, too.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Based on 14 months of collected data obtained from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) through a Freedom of Information Act request, we found that consumers filed&nbsp;36,403 complaints between July 21, 2011, and September 30, 2012, against mortgage lenders, servicers and other mortgage companies for mortgage loan-related <a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/financial-dictionary/stock-market/issue-5068" class="definition-url"><span class="definition-url">issues</span></a>. That's more than 2,600 complaints per month, or about 85 per day.</p>
<p>Of those mortgage-related complaints:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>About 20,000 complaints </strong>were filed against lenders and servicers for issues relating to loan modifications, collections and foreclosures. When borrowers are unable to pay, the CFPB explains there is sometimes "consumer confusion around the process and requirements for obtaining loan modification and refinancing..." especially when borrowers are given unclear terms on reduced-payment trial periods, income-based <a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/financial-dictionary/debt-bankruptcy/repayment-1588" class="definition-url"><span class="definition-url">repayment</span></a> plans and ever-changing payment schedules. Consumers&nbsp;also&nbsp;complained that they were frustrated with some the institutions' unwillingness to renegotiate payment agreements or discuss <a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/financial-dictionary/real-estate/foreclosure-2392" class="definition-url"><span class="definition-url">foreclosure</span></a> alternatives when it was difficult for them to repay.</li>
<li><strong>Nearly 9,000 complaints </strong>were filed for issues relating to loan servicing, payments and <a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/financial-dictionary/real-estate/escrow-65" class="definition-url"><span class="definition-url">escrow</span></a> accounts. When it comes to making mortgage payments, the agency explains that some consumers "express confusion about whether making timely trial period payments<span class="nolink"> will guarantee</span> placement into a permanent [loan] modification." Others expressed concern that collectors didn't process their payments in a timely fashion, which led to unmerited late fees.</li>
<li><strong>Slightly more than 7,000 complaints </strong>were filed for other mortgage-related issues including loan application processing, settlement signing processing and problems with <a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/financial-dictionary/insurance/underwriting-1545" class="definition-url"><span class="definition-url">underwriting</span></a> and credit offers.</li>
</ul>
<p>And with the large banks grabbing an increasingly larger share of the mortgage lending <span class="nolink">market</span>, the complaints have become heavily concentrated as well. <strong>Out of more than 360 financial institutions&nbsp;on the CFPB's list, just five received nearly 22,000 complaints.</strong></p>
<p>According to the CFPB, these five institutions received 60% of all mortgage-related complaints:</p>
<p><strong>5. Ocwen</strong></p>
<p><strong>Mortgage Complaints Filed:</strong> 1,417 (4% of all complaints)<br /> <strong>Most Common Complaints:&nbsp;</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Loan modifications, collections, foreclosures (739&nbsp;complaints)&nbsp;</li>
<li>Loan servicing, payments, escrow accounts (493)&nbsp;</li>
<li>Qualified Written Requests (95)</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>4. Citibank</strong></p>
<p><strong>Mortgage Complaints Filed:</strong> 1,703 (5% of all complaints)<br /> <strong>Most Common Complaints:&nbsp;</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Loan modifications, collections, foreclosures (894&nbsp;complaints)</li>
<li>Loan servicing, payments, escrow accounts (490)</li>
<li>Application, originator or&nbsp;<a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/financial-dictionary/real-estate/mortgage-broker-4152" class="definition-url"><span class="definition-url">mortgage broker</span></a> issues (140)</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>3. J.P. Morgan Chase</strong></p>
<p><strong>Mortgage Complaints Filed: </strong>3,714 (10% of all complaints)<br /> <strong>Most Common Complaints:<br /> </strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Loan modifications, collections, foreclosures (2,131&nbsp;complaints)&nbsp;</li>
<li>Loan servicing, payments, escrow accounts (926)&nbsp;</li>
<li>Application, originator or&nbsp;mortgage broker issues (264)</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>2. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/wells-fargo" class="hidden_link">Wells Fargo</a></strong></p>
<p><strong>Mortgage Complaints Filed: </strong>5,051 (14% of all complaints)<br /> <strong>Most Common Complaints:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Loan modifications, collections, foreclosures (3,009 complaints)</li>
<li>Loan servicing, payments, escrow accounts (1,123)&nbsp;</li>
<li>Application, originator or mortgage broker issues (427)</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>1. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/bank-of-america" class="hidden_link">Bank of America</a></strong></p>
<p><strong>Mortgage Complaints Filed: </strong>9,930 (27% of all complaints)<br /> <strong>Most Common Complaints:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Loan modifications, collections, foreclosures (6,430 complaints)</li>
<li>Loan servicing, payments, escrow accounts (2,044)&nbsp;</li>
<li>Application, originator or mortgage broker issues (542)</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>In all, 27% of the CFPB's 36,400 mortgage-related complaints were directed at just one bank -- Bank of America</strong>. Bank of America received almost twice&nbsp;as many total complaints as Wells Fargo (the nation's largest mortgage lender), even as Bank of America originated just one-sixth the number of new mortgages that Wells Fargo did in the first two quarters of 2012.</p>
<p>Second-place Wells Fargo received more than 5,000 complaints. However, that's a proportionally small number of complaints when<strong>&nbsp;</strong>considering <a href="http://www.federalreserve.gov/pubs/bulletin/2012/PDF/2011_HMDA.pdf" target="_blank">Wells Fargo originated 908,962 mortgages&nbsp;in 2011</a> &mdash; more than the combined number of mortgages originated by&nbsp;next-largest mortgage lenders J.P. Morgan Chase, Bank of America and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/citi" class="hidden_link">Citi</a>.</p>
<p>Bank of America and Wells Fargo did not reply to requests for comment on this report.</p>
<p>And while J.P. Morgan Chase, Citibank and mortgage servicer Ocwen <strong>&mdash; </strong>which does not originate loans <strong>&mdash;</strong>each received well over 1,000 complaints, this wasn't out of line with the total number of&nbsp;mortgage loans they&nbsp;handled over the period. For example, <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/03/us-mortgages-idUSBRE8421B820120503">Reuters reported</a> that J.P. Morgan Chase originated 10.6% of all new mortgage loans&nbsp;in the second quarter of 2012&nbsp;and acquired 10.2% of all mortgage-related complaints on the CFPB's bank list.</p>
<p>In response to these findings, J.P. Morgan Chase spokeswoman Amy Bonitatibus said: "Our customers are our top priority. When a customer raises an <a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/financial-dictionary/stock-market/issue-5068" class="definition-url"><span class="definition-url">issue</span></a>, we work to resolve it as quickly as possible. Over the last year, the number of complaints we received has decreased by roughly 40 percent. We continue to look for ways to improve the customer experience."</p>
<p>Citi spokesman Mark Rodgers, also responded: "We take borrower complaints seriously. We continue to work with the CFPB and our customers to resolve complaints expeditiously and in accordance with the law, and where applicable, within investor guidelines."</p>
<p>Ocwen did not respond to request for comment.</p>
<p>When it came to particular issues across all<strong> </strong>financial institutions, more than <strong>50% of all complaints made against mortgage lenders and servicers&nbsp;were related to loan&nbsp;modification, collection and foreclosure issues</strong>, suggesting financial institutions have plenty of room to improve when it comes to working with&nbsp;struggling borrowers on repayment plans and discussing foreclosure alternatives.</p>
<p>Bank of America received more of these types of&nbsp;complaints than Chase, Citi and Wells Fargo put together.</p>
<p>Another <strong>25% of all the complaints against financial institutions had to do with making loan payments</strong> (loan servicing, payments and escrow&nbsp;account issues), as many borrowers are confused with institutions' often unclear terms on payment date and amount details on their mortgage &mdash; especially after a loan modification.</p>
<p><strong>The <span class="nolink">Investing </span>Answer: </strong>Consumer watchdog CFPB's data isn't just a venting of frustration for nothing &mdash; many financial&nbsp;institutions take these complaints seriously. The CFPB plans to use these complaints to help lenders, mortgage brokers and settlement agents craft easier-to-understand mortgage applications and disclosures, which should help smooth future business relationships between consumers and banks.</p>
<p>But until that happens, here are some tips. Before you apply for a mortgage, know your lender's rules and terms and what to expect in interest and fees. If you have a mortgage and are confused about the terms of your agreement, write down questions and clarify your concerns &mdash; better to know your terms than guess and risk foreclosure after falling behind on payments.</p>
<p>Finally, if you have trouble making your payments, communicate with your lender. It's possible they can work out a payment plan with you so you can keep your home. But you won't get to negotiate if you don't let them know you've fallen on hard times. The CFPB offers more mortgage-help tips <a href="http://www.consumerfinance.gov/askcfpb/" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div><strong>Like this article? Here are some related articles from InvestingAnswers:&nbsp;</strong></div>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/personal-finance/credit/10-most-complained-about-credit-card-banks-4407" target="_blank">10 Most Complained-About<span class="nolink"> Credit Card Banks</span></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/personal-finance/homes-mortgages/7-ways-stop-foreclosure-your-home-1909" target="_blank">7 Ways to Stop a Foreclosure on Your Home</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.investinganswers.com/personal-finance/homes-mortgages/5-secrets-surviving-mortgage-process-4314" target="_blank">5 Secrets to Surviving the Mortgage Process</a></li>
</ul><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-top-10-states-for-foreclosure-2012-12" >The 10 worst states for foreclosure ></a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-five-worst-mortagage-lender-banks-2012-12#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/wealth-management-has-no-meaning-2012-12Suddenly, 'Wealth Management' Doesn't Mean Anything Anymorehttp://www.businessinsider.com/wealth-management-has-no-meaning-2012-12
Tue, 11 Dec 2012 17:06:30 -0500Charles Paikert
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/4edf787e6bb3f7351d00000d-400-300/wallst-blurry.jpg" border="0" alt="Bankers Shadows Wall Street" /></p><p>In what could arguably be called a watershed moment in the history of the financial advisory business, IMCA, the Investment Management Consultants Association, released a white paper recently <a href="http://www.imca.org/pages/IMCA-Defines-Wealth-Management" target="_blank">defining the practice of wealth management.</a></p>
<p>Finally! After years of vague generalities, a respected industry organization nailed it down &ndash; through their own lens, sure, and not without a healthy dose of self-interest, namely promoting their own &ldquo;certified private wealth advisor&rdquo; certification program.</p>
<p>But hey &ndash; they did it.</p>
<p>And they did it well, sending out a survey to 43,000 advisors (seems high, but OK), and carefully processing the 400 responses.</p>
<p>IMCA&rsquo;s white paper includes a comprehensive overview of the market, the high-net worth clients in that market ($5 million minimum net worth), and what specialized skills and knowledge advisors need to properly service those clients.</p>
<p>Sometimes the white paper lapses into jargon (&ldquo;knowledge domains&rdquo;) and sometimes it can cause eyeballs to roll (&ldquo;the knowledge required to provide competent wealth management incorporates 169 topics&rdquo;), but overall it&rsquo;s pretty damn good.</p>
<p>There&rsquo;s only one problem, and it&rsquo;s a big one: the phrase &ldquo;wealth management&rdquo; itself has become so commoditized, so diluted and so ubiquitous, that it&rsquo;s now almost synonymous with &ldquo;financial services.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p>
<p>Let&rsquo;s be honest: &ldquo;wealth management&rdquo; has been nearly completely stripped of its original meaning, and its common usage simply doesn&rsquo;t convey what IMCA says it means &ndash; or should mean.</p>
<p>Just look at all the firms that either have &ldquo;wealth management&rdquo; in their official name or as part of their business, as in <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/merrill-lynch" class="hidden_link">Merrill Lynch</a> Wealth Management, etc., etc.</p>
<p>How many clients of those firms have a net worth of $5 million or need half the services IMCA&rsquo;s definition says they do?</p>
<p>Several years ago, when Citibank launched its &ldquo;Personal Wealth Management&rdquo; division, it was obvious that a teenager who wanted to open an account at <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/citi" class="hidden_link">Citi</a> with his or her savings from a summer camp job would be considered a &ldquo;wealth management&rdquo; customer.</p>
<p>It&rsquo;s as if an automobile industry association laid out specs for BMWs, but they ended up being applied to Kias.</p>
<p>Inevitably, the true high-end of the industry will want to distinguish itself from the hoi polloi and come up with a new name that reflects the premium services truly wealthy clients need.</p>
<p>For example, consumer publications targeting high income readers who buy luxury products are increasing fond of the word &ldquo;bespoke&rdquo; to convey really expensive stuff.</p>
<p>On the business side, private banks, which really do have clients that fit IMCA&rsquo;s definition, may have a head start with that oh-so-exclusive sounding moniker &ldquo;private.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Some variation of &ldquo;ultra,&rdquo; as in ultra-high-net worth, may also be in the running.</p>
<p>Shirl Penney, chief executive and founder of Dynasty Financial Partners, who knows the market about as well as anyone, thinks &ldquo;Wealth Advisory&rdquo; will do just fine.</p>
<p>Or maybe Madison Avenue will come up with something entirely new.</p>
<p>Today&rsquo;s &ldquo;wealth manager&rdquo; may well become tomorrow&rsquo;s &ldquo;affluent advancement advocate,&rdquo; or &ldquo;strategic resource consultant,&rdquo;&nbsp; suggested Ken Krimstein, a former creative director at New York advertising agencies who now teaches at DePaul University in Chicago.</p>
<p>&ldquo;My Very Own Goldman&rdquo; may also appeal to the well-heeled client, Krimstein speculated.</p>
<p>Don Draper couldn&rsquo;t have said it better.</p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/wealth-management-has-no-meaning-2012-12#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/banks-drop-fees-for-hurricane-sandy-chase-citibank-2012-10Here's A List Of Banks Dropping Fees For Customers In Sandy's Pathhttp://www.businessinsider.com/banks-drop-fees-for-hurricane-sandy-chase-citibank-2012-10
Tue, 30 Oct 2012 10:00:00 -0400Mandi Woodruff
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/508e8e6e6bb3f7a825000017-400-300/hurricane-sandy.jpg" border="0" alt="hurricane sandy" width="400" height="300" /></p><p>With much of the New England area either hunkered down for Hurricane Sandy or evacuating to higher ground, two of the nation's largest banks have given consumers breaks on fees until the storm passes.</p>
<p>Citibank, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/capital-one" class="hidden_link">Capital One</a>, and Chase <a href="%20%20%20%20%20Overdraft%20Protection%20Transfer,%20Extended%20Overdraft,%20Returned%20Item%20and%20Insufficient%20Funds%20Fees%20for%20deposit%20accounts.%20%20%20%20%20Late%20fees%20on%20credit%20cards,%20business%20and%20consumer%20loans,%20including%20mortgages,%20home-equity,%20auto%20and%20student%20loans.">alerted customers</a> over the weekend that they would waive a slew of fees for customers in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut through Wednesday.</p>
<p>UPDATE: You can add <a href="https://www.wellsfargo.com/press/2012/20121029_SandyFeeWaiver" target="_blank">Wells Fargo</a> and <a href="http://www.sacbee.com/2012/10/29/4947163/td-bank-launches-assistance-program.html" target="_blank">TD Bank</a> to that list as well. </p>
<p>Each bank offers slightly different deals here, so you'll want to double check by calling if possible. For the most part, here's what will be waived: </p>
<ul>
<li class="bwlistitemmargb">Overdraft Protection Transfers, Extended Overdraft, Returned Item and Insufficient Funds Fees for deposit accounts.</li>
<li class="bwlistitemmargb">Late fees on credit cards, business and consumer loans, including mortgages, home-equity, auto, and student loans.</li>
</ul>
<p>Just don't go too crazy with your plastic. Once this temporary grace period ends, consumers have until the end of the business day Thursday to check that their balances are current on all accounts, then fees begin anew.</p>
<p>Other big banks like <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/bank-of-america" class="hidden_link">Bank of America</a> and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/wells-fargo" class="hidden_link">Wells Fargo</a> have yet to issue similar announcements, and power will almost certainly be cut throughout the storm. If you lose Internet connection, keep tabs on your current balances by calling the bank's number on the back of your cards to avoid any fees.</p>
<p><strong>See Also: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/melanie-martinez-lost-her-fifth-home-to-hurricane-isaac-2012-9">This woman lost five homes to hurricanes &gt;</a> </strong></p>
<div style="overflow: hidden; color: #000000; background-color: #ffffff; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">&nbsp;</div><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/banks-drop-fees-for-hurricane-sandy-chase-citibank-2012-10#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/homeowners-get-money-from-civil-settlement-2012-10Banks Are Coughing Up Cash For Homeowners Who Faced Foreclosure http://www.businessinsider.com/homeowners-get-money-from-civil-settlement-2012-10
Thu, 04 Oct 2012 18:07:00 -0400Brandon Ballenger
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/5058da2c69beddc441000010-400-300/bank-bank-of-america-foreclosure.jpg" border="0" alt="bank, Bank of America, foreclosure" /></p><p>If your home loan is serviced by Ally/GMAC, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/bank-of-america" class="hidden_link">Bank of America</a>, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/citi" class="hidden_link">Citi</a>, JPMorgan Chase, or <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/wells-fargo" class="hidden_link">Wells Fargo</a> &ndash; if that&rsquo;s who you make payments to &ndash; keep reading.</p>
<p>Likewise if you had a home loan with any of those companies between 2008 and 2011 and your home was foreclosed.</p>
<p>If you have another lender (or the home was in Oklahoma), you might as well stop here and skip to the last paragraph of the article. Sorry, most of this won&rsquo;t help you &ndash; but&nbsp;there is plenty of <a href="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/2012/06/29/how-to-refinance-an-underwater-mortgage/" title="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/2012/06/29/how-to-refinance-an-underwater-mortgage/">other refinancing help out there</a> to read up on.</p>
<p>Still here? Then you need to know about the <a href="http://www.nationalmortgagesettlement.com/faq" target="_blank" title="Opens in new window: http://www.nationalmortgagesettlement.com/faq" class="external">second largest civil settlement</a> state attorneys general have ever obtained. (The largest was, by far, the <a href="http://oag.ca.gov/tobacco/msa" target="_blank" title="Opens in new window: http://oag.ca.gov/tobacco/msa" class="external">1998 tobacco master settlement</a> worth about $206 billion.) In February, the five biggest <a href="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/rates/mortgage-rates/" title="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/rates/mortgage-rates/" class="dka">mortgage</a> companies (named above, and holding around 60 percent of American mortgages)&nbsp;agreed to a $25 billion settlement with the federal government and&nbsp;49 states &ndash; excluding, you guessed it, Oklahoma.</p>
<p>You may soon get part of that settlement, since banks are now starting to cough up cash. The settlement gave them three years, but it includes incentives for acting within the first year and penalties for moving too slowly.</p>
<h3><strong>Why this settlement is happening</strong></h3>
<p>The settlement is mainly over the &ldquo;robo-signing&rdquo; scandal from two years ago &ndash; which we covered in an easily digestible <a href="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/info/foreclosure/" title="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/info/foreclosure/">three-part video series</a>. If you don&rsquo;t remember the details, here&rsquo;s a quick refresher from the settlement: Lenders &ldquo;routinely signed foreclosure-related documents outside the presence of a notary public and without really knowing whether the facts they contained were correct.&rdquo;</p>
<p>This is illegal, and caused major problems &ndash; including some people wrongfully losing their homes, and real estate markets freezing up as courts struggled to process the volume of foreclosures. As <a href="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/2010/10/18/the-foreclosure-freeze-what-it-means-and-why-it-matters/" title="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/2010/10/18/the-foreclosure-freeze-what-it-means-and-why-it-matters/">we&rsquo;ve argued</a>, this also slowed down the housing recovery, which affects <em>everybody&rsquo;s</em> home value.</p>
<h3><strong>What&rsquo;s in the settlement</strong></h3>
<p>The settlement is enormous, and has a lot of money going in lots of directions. According to the <a href="https://www.mortgageoversight.com/about-the-mortgage-settlement/" target="_blank" title="Opens in new window: https://www.mortgageoversight.com/about-the-mortgage-settlement/" class="external">Office of Mortgage Oversight</a>, created to administer the settlement, here&rsquo;s where&hellip;</p>
<blockquote>
<ul>
<li>At least $17 billion in principal reduction and loan modification for homeowners who are in trouble and need help to avoid foreclosure.</li>
<li>Up to $3 billion in refinancing for &ldquo;underwater&rdquo; homeowners who are current on their <a href="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/rates/mortgage-rates/" title="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/rates/mortgage-rates/" class="dka">mortgages</a> but owe more than their homes&rsquo; current market value.</li>
<li>$1.5 billion in payments to homeowners who lost their homes to foreclosure between Jan. 1, 2008, and Dec. 31, 2011. These recipients will have to complete a simple form, and they will not have to drop any legal claims they may have.</li>
<li>Payments to the 49 signing states to support the prevention of foreclosure as well as consumer protection and education programs, as well as civil penalties.</li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<p>We covered part of those first two bullets a couple of weeks ago, in <a href="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/2012/09/11/surprise-mortgage-refinances/" title="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/2012/09/11/surprise-mortgage-refinances/">Surprise! Bank Slashes Some Mortgage Rates</a>. JPMorgan Chase (whose part in the settlement includes $4.21 billion in relief to borrowers and $1.08 billion to the government) has already begun lowering payments, loan balances, or sometimes both for some underwater homeowners who managed to hold on until now.</p>
<p>If that&rsquo;s your servicer, keep an eye on the mailbox and don&rsquo;t throw out any correspondence you get. If you haven&rsquo;t seen anything, call and ask. The call center number for settlement questions is 1-866-372-6901 and their <a href="https://www.chase.com/online/services/mortgage-servicing-settlement.htm?jp_aid=hf/hlphomeowner/int/na/kyhtile" target="_blank" title="Opens in new window: https://www.chase.com/online/services/mortgage-servicing-settlement.htm?jp_aid=hf/hlphomeowner/int/na/kyhtile" class="external">info page is here</a>.</p>
<p>Details about another part of the settlement: money for people who couldn&rsquo;t keep their homes. This applies to people meeting the following criteria&hellip;</p>
<blockquote>
<ul>
<li>Your loan went to foreclosure sale between Jan. 1, 2008, and Dec. 31, 2011.</li>
<li>The loan was serviced by one of the five mortgage servicers participating in the settlement.</li>
<li>You made at least three payments on the loan.</li>
<li>You lived in or intended to live in the property at the time of origination of the loan.</li>
<li>Your property was a one-to-four-unit residential property.</li>
<li>The unpaid principal balance of the first mortgage loan did not exceed $729,750 for a one-unit property; $934,200 for a two-unit property; $1,129,250 for a three-unit property; or $1,403,400 for a four-unit property.</li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<p>According to the attorneys general, these ex-homeowners should start receiving letters about the settlement early this month, including instructions for how to file a claim, which should be at least $840. (&ldquo;This estimated payment amount is based on 100% of all eligible borrowers submitting claim forms,&rdquo; the <a href="http://www.nationalmortgagesettlement.com/faq" target="_blank" title="Opens in new window: http://www.nationalmortgagesettlement.com/faq" class="external">settlement website&rsquo;s FAQ</a> says, &ldquo;and therefore the payment you receive will very likely be higher.&rdquo;)</p>
<h3><strong>What else you can do now</strong></h3>
<p>Besides waiting for the mail, here are three other things you should do:</p>
<p><strong>1. Watch for scams. </strong></p>
<p>There&rsquo;s a lot of money involved here, which makes it a prime target for criminals. If you get a call about the settlement, you shouldn&rsquo;t need to share bank account info or your Social Security number:- the bank should already have your personal information. If you&rsquo;re skeptical, ask for contact information and say you&rsquo;ll call them back &ndash; then look up the mortgage number for your bank to check. (The current numbers for all five banks are on the <a href="http://www.nationalmortgagesettlement.com/help/#wheretogo" target="_blank" title="Opens in new window: http://www.nationalmortgagesettlement.com/help/#wheretogo" class="external">settlement website</a>.) There&rsquo;s no fee involved, so be wary if one&rsquo;s mentioned.</p>
<p><strong>2. Stay informed.</strong></p>
<p>Details and timing for much of the settlement still haven&rsquo;t been worked out &ndash; the banks have more than two years to pay up. It&rsquo;s not a bad idea to periodically check <a href="http://www.nationalmortgagesettlement.com/" target="_blank" title="Opens in new window: http://www.nationalmortgagesettlement.com/" class="external">www.nationalmortgagesettlement.com</a> or the website of your <a href="http://nationalmortgagesettlement.com/states" target="_blank" title="Opens in new window: http://nationalmortgagesettlement.com/states" class="external">state&rsquo;s attorney general</a> for the latest information. The settlement does not prevent the government, states, or consumers from pursuing or joining other lawsuits, so even Oklahoma might get some money before this is over.</p>
<p><strong>3. Look at other options.</strong></p>
<p>Many may not be eligible for this settlement, and some people can&rsquo;t afford to wait. Recognize there&rsquo;s <a href="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/2012/06/29/how-to-refinance-an-underwater-mortgage/" title="http://www.moneytalksnews.com/2012/06/29/how-to-refinance-an-underwater-mortgage/">other mortgage help</a>&nbsp;available, including for people with loans held by <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/fannie-mae" class="hidden_link">Fannie Mae</a> or <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/freddie-mac" class="hidden_link">Freddie Mac</a>. Here are some links to remember&hellip;</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.knowyouroptions.com/" target="_blank" title="Opens in new window: http://www.knowyouroptions.com/" class="external">www.knowyouroptions.com</a> (Fannie Mae)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.freddiemac.com/avoidforeclosure" target="_blank" title="Opens in new window: http://www.freddiemac.com/avoidforeclosure" class="external">www.freddiemac.com/avoidforeclosure</a> (Freddie Mac)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.makinghomeaffordable.gov/" target="_blank" title="Opens in new window: http://www.makinghomeaffordable.gov/" class="external">www.makinghomeaffordable.gov</a> (Everyone)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.independentforeclosurereview.com/" target="_blank" title="Opens in new window: http://www.independentforeclosurereview.com/" class="external">www.independentforeclosurereview.com</a> (Everyone)</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>DON'T MISS: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/12-great-homes-for-150000-or-less-2012-8">12 Stellar Homes You Can Buy For $150,000 Or Less</a></strong></p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/homeowners-get-money-from-civil-settlement-2012-10#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/citi-vp-caroline-meanwell-bail-money-for-louise-neathway-2012-7Why A Citi Banker May Not Be Able To Post Bail For Her Daughter Who Is Accused Of Extorting The Yankees' GMhttp://www.businessinsider.com/citi-vp-caroline-meanwell-bail-money-for-louise-neathway-2012-7
Thu, 05 Jul 2012 09:04:36 -0400Julia La Roche
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/4ff58c5e69beddac0c00000d/caroline-meanwell.jpg" border="0" alt="Caroline Meanwell" /></p><p>A Citibank vice president has put up $300,000 to get her daughter out on bail after being held in jail for the last five months on extortion charges, but prosecutors want to make sure she's not being extorted, <a href="http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/local/new_york&amp;id=8723545">Sarah Wallace at ABC Eyewitness News reports</a>.</p>
<p><span><a class="hidden_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/citi">Citi</a> VP Caroline Meanwell's 37-year-old daughter&nbsp;</span>Louis Neathway has been accused of allegedly stalking Yankees' general manager <a class="hidden_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/brian-cashman">Brian Cashman</a> after a nine-month extramarital affair allegedly went bad and extorting thousands of dollars from him, according to the report.</p>
<p>Neathway, who has been in Rikers since February, has pleaded not guilty to the charges, the report said. &nbsp;</p>
<p>The District Attorney's office is holding up the bail package put up by the banker because they want to make sure that Neathway is not extorting her own mother. &nbsp;</p>
<p>Meanwell told <a class="hidden_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/abc">ABC</a> Eyewitness News that she's putting up the bail because she's her daughter and she loves her and that she would "lay down my life for her." &nbsp;</p>
<p>They'll be back in criminal court today. &nbsp;</p>
<p><a href="http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/local/new_york&amp;id=8723545"><strong>Read the full report here &gt;</strong></a></p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/citi-vp-caroline-meanwell-bail-money-for-louise-neathway-2012-7#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/john-paulson-morgan-stanley-citibank-watch-list-2012-5REPORT: Morgan Stanley And Citibank Have Put John Paulson On Their 'Watch Lists' http://www.businessinsider.com/john-paulson-morgan-stanley-citibank-watch-list-2012-5
Thu, 24 May 2012 12:10:00 -0400Julia La Roche
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/4e04d434ccd1d52c5e050000/john-paulson.jpg" border="0" alt="john paulson" /></p><p>Closely-followed hedge fund manager <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/john-paulson" class="hidden_link">John Paulson</a>, who famously bet against the subprime housing market, had a disastrous 2011 with some of his funds falling&nbsp;<a href="http://www.absolutereturn-alpha.com/Article/3004288/The-Rich-List-From-Winners-to-Losers.html?ArticleId=3004288">30 to 50 percent</a><span>.</span></p>
<p>This year his Advantage funds are still in the red although those losses are said to be high single digits. &nbsp;</p>
<p><a href="http://www.nypost.com/p/news/business/laying_golden_egg_yu0As9lwmoBFYEM8Fy24aM?utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_content=Business">The <em>New York Post</em> reports</a> that the famed hedge fund manager, who has been able to raise tons of capital through bank hedge fund platforms that allow individuals to avoid the $10 million minimum investment for Paulson &amp; Co., might have a problem with that type of investment vehicle. &nbsp;</p>
<p>From the Post: (emphasis ours)</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">This money could become a problem. Two of these banks &mdash; <strong><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackboard/morgan-stanley" class="hidden_link">Morgan Stanley</a> and Citibank &mdash; have put Paulson on a &ldquo;watch&rdquo; list, which means they won&rsquo;t add any new money for three months</strong>. The two have about $500 million invested in Paulson.</p>
<p><strong>DON'T MISS: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/john-paulson-gold-investments-2012-5">Some Of John Paulson's Investors Are So Angry At His Gold Bets They Want Out &gt;</a></strong></p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/john-paulson-morgan-stanley-citibank-watch-list-2012-5#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p>